Opiate withdrawal during pregnancy may occur because of voluntary or forced detoxification, or from rapid cycling associated with exposure to short-acting "street" opiates. Thus, animal modeling of prenatal withdrawal and development of potential therapeutic interventions is important. Direct developmental effects of opiates and/or withdrawal can be studied using a chick model. In ovo administr...

Serotonin (5-HT) has been strongly implicated in the regulation of the mammalian circadian clock located in the suprachiasmatic nuclei (SCN); however, its role in behavioral (nonphotic) circadian phase resetting remains elusive. Central to this issue are divergent lines of evidence that the SCN may, or may not, be a target for the phase-resetting effects of 5-HT. We have addressed this question...

In vivo microdialysis was performed in wildtype and 5-HT1B receptor knockout mice to explore the role of 5-HT1B receptors in striatal serotonin (5-HT) and dopamine (DA) outflow. Local administration of the selective 5-HT reuptake inhibitor fluvoxamine (0.1 – 10 μM) dose-dependently increased 5-HT to the same extent in wildtype and 5-HT1B receptor knockout mice. The 5-HT1B receptor agonist CP931...

Chromium (Cr) (III), an essential microelement of living organisms, was reported to exhibit potential antidepressant properties in preclinical and clinical studies. The aim of the present study was to examine the effect of CrCl(3) ip administration in the forced swim test (FST) in mice and the involvement of glutamatergic and serotonergic receptors in the antidepressant-like activity of chromiu...

Serotonin (5HT) is a constituent of the so-called "inflammatory soup" that sensitizes nociceptors during inflammation. Nevertheless, receptors and signaling mechanisms that mediate an excitation of dorsal root ganglion (DRG) neurons by 5HT remained controversial. Therefore, capsaicin-sensitive nociceptive neurons dissociated from rat DRGs were used to investigate effects of 5HT on membrane exci...

The GABA system is highly involved in the pathophysiology of mood disorders such as depression. Altered GABAergic function is evident in depressed patients and animal models of depression. Currently, the most widely used antidepressants are selective 5-HT reuptake inhibitors, such as fluoxetine. However, the effects of fluoxetine on GABAergic synaptic neurotransmission remain poorly investigate...

The effect of inositol as an antidepressant was previously demonstrated in both animal models of depression-like behavior and in clinical trials. Unlike most antidepressant drugs, inositol does not have a clear target in the synapse and was not demonstrated to alter monoamine levels in the brain. The present study attempted to draw a psychopharmacological profile of inositol's behavioral effect...

Hoodia gordonii is a plant species used traditionally in southern Africa to suppress appetite. Recently, it has been associated with a significant increase in blood pressure and pulse rate in women, suggesting sympathomimetic activity. The present study investigated the possible antidepressant-like effects of acute and repeated (15 days) administration of H. gordonii extract (25 and 50 mg/kg, p...

The effect of fluvoxamine, a selective serotonin (5-HT) reuptake inhibitor, was studied in a model of anxiety and/or obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) in mice. In the anxiety/OCD model, marble-burying behavior, marble-burying was significantly suppressed by fluvoxamine at 30 and 60 mg/kg, p.o. and the monoamine reuptake inhibitor clomipramine, at 60 mg/kg, p.o. No suppressive effect, however,...

Atypical antipsychotics show preferential 5-HT 2A versus dopamine (DA) D2 receptor affinity. At clinical doses, they fully occupy cortical 5-HT2 receptors, which suggests a strong relationship with their therapeutic action. Half of the pyramidal neurones in the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) express 5-HT 2A receptors. Also, neurones excited through 5-HT 2A receptors project to the ventral tegm...